Only With You
by Belle Walker
Summary: Realizing his days with her might be limited, Julian takes drastic measures to keep Marti from leaving him.  Story now complete.
1. Chapter 1

His days with her were numbered.

It suddenly hit him like a bucket of cold water late one afternoon as he dined at The Rat and his girlfriend stole bites of food off his plate as she was accustomed to doing.

Her topic at the moment was graduation — still a long ways off and yet so close at the same time — and although he'd been listening well enough, one particular string of words caught his full attention.

"…pass the Bar up north and get a job in a D.A.'s office if I can." She paused, seeing the look on his face. "What's the matter?"

He recovered quickly, reaching for another french fry with a careful veneer of nonchalance. "What's wrong with staying in Memphis?"

She gave her blonde curls a slight shake. "Nothing, I guess. I…just never really wanted to stick around here forever. More opportunities up north, you know?"

He knew. He knew all too well the world of opportunities that awaited her outside of Memphis.

"There aren't any 'opportunities' in your hometown?" he questioned, his pulse speeding up a bit at this undesirable revelation.

"Well…I mean, there could be, of course," Marti answered. "But aren't you the one who says there's bigger things out there than just the here-and-now?"

Trust her to use his own words against him. "Not everything I say is carved in stone, Miss Perkins."

"Whatever, Mr. Parrish," she replied in a somewhat mocking way. She stole another fry off his plate, continuing her thoughts out loud. "I even made a list of places I want to check out up there."

A list! Great. "Aren't you getting a little ahead of yourself?"

She gave him a questioning look.

"I mean, you do still have to _graduate_, you know," he softened his words with a teasing tone and a cute little smile.

"Are you trying to tell me that the early bird _doesn't_ catch a worm?" she countered smoothly. He was starting to sound a little less than supportive, and she wasn't quite sure how to take that.

Realizing he needed to employ a more under-the-radar approach with this, Julian changed tactics: Give her the illusion of support while subtly collecting information to use against her.

"Do you have your list on you? Maybe I know some of the places you put down." He really just needed to get ahold of it and see exactly what he was up against.

"Yeah, it's right here," Marti said, reaching for her bag and setting it in her lap. It certainly couldn't hurt to get a little inside information to help her along, she figured.

In the split second that her visual attention was diverted, Julian gave a calculated push to the nearest side of his plate on the table. As expected, it struck her half-full glass of Coke which wobbled and promptly tipped over.

"Whoa!" Marti jerked her bag out of the way but wasn't quick enough to prevent a splash of Coke from getting the front of her shirt.

"Wow, I'm really sorry about that," Julian lied through his teeth, up-righting the glass and mopping up the mess with their paper napkins.

"It's alright," Marti stood, pulling the wet fabric a little away from her stomach. "I'll just…um…wash this off in the bathroom."

"Yeah, you do that," Julian answered readily. "I'll take care of this." He poked at the puddle again.

As soon as she was around the corner, he dropped the napkins and snatched up Marti's messenger bag.

Yep — there was the list, right in front. Handwritten on purple stationery. It was a pretty safe bet that she hadn't copied it to her computer yet.

There were easily over thirty law firms listed there, and each of them bearing addresses far north of Memphis, Tennessee.

He had to get rid of that list before she actually applied to any of those places!

Now he wished he'd brought his briefcase so he had someplace to stash this evil thing. Lacking any other options, he folded the paper into smaller sections and jammed it into his pants pocket.

Then he replaced the messenger bag on Marti's chair and quickly finished cleaning up the mess on the table.

Marti came back a few minutes later with the splash on her shirt watered down and nearly dry.

"I got you a replacement," Julian indicated a new glass of pop at her side of the table. "And I apologize again for wiping out your first one."

"No, don't worry about it," Marti waved it off easily. "I've had my clumsy moments too."

But to prevent any more, she dragged her chair around the table closer to his side and pushed his plate and her glass away to the other side.

Julian liked that arrangement better anyway, since Marti was now close enough to touch without having a whole table top in the way.

To distract her from their previous topic of law firms and employment outside of Memphis, Julian reached over, twined his fingers around hers, and teased her with, "Now, I thought cheerleaders were supposed to be graceful at all times. Or does that rule not apply to the pre-law ones?"

Marti leaned in closer, enjoying the intimacy. "Only to those who let rules stand in their way."

Julian gave her a knowing smirk. "Then that would definitely rule you out," he flirted softly in that honeysuckle southern accent that he knew she liked to hear.

She sent him a sly little smile, playing with his fingertips.

"Oh, you wanted to see my list," she suddenly remembered, pulling her hands from his and picking up her messenger bag once again.

Immediately missing their physical contact, Julian leaned back in his chair with a silent sigh and waited patiently for Marti to not find what he'd already taken possession of.

Marti dug through her bag, a frown creasing one eyebrow. "I could have sworn I brought those papers with me..." With a sigh, she gave up looking and closed her bag.

"I'm sure it'll turn up somewhere," Julian assured her innocently, almost surprised that he actually got away with taking it without her knowing it.

"I hope so," she answered sullenly. "That was the only copy I had, and it took me three hours to compile it."

"You'll find it," Julian repeated casually. "In the meantime…" He lowered his voice to an intimate volume once again. "What do you say we get out of here for a while?"

Marti knew exactly what he was suggesting — a little sexy afternoon rendezvous at his place — but sadly she had somewhere to be in just a little while.

"I have cheer practice in about fifteen minutes," she said regretfully, linking her fingers with his once more. "Rain check?"

Disappointed, he confirmed with a little smirk, "Rain check."

Her gaze flickered briefly to his lips and then she leaned in for a kiss (or three, since they never seemed to have just one).

Julian commonly wore his shirt collars with the top two buttons open, and as he felt her fingers creep unhindered toward the back of his neck, his own hand rose to cradle her head.

"You know, people are probably watching us," he whispered against her lips, always more mindful of spying eyes than she ever seemed to be.

"Mm, yeah…I don't care," she mumbled back before giving his lips one final chaste peck. Then she drained half her glass of Coke and scooted her chair back. "I'll see you."

He watched her leave, swallowing the lump that was back in his throat again. He didn't want her to move away — the very thought of it pained his heart.

He had to do something, before he found himself uprooting his own entire law practice just to stay near her wherever she went.

Julian took a french fry from his plate and poked it into his mouth. It was ice-cold and chewy.

Just as well — his appetite was gone, anyway.


	2. Chapter 2

Abandoning his plate of cold food, Julian took a seat at the bar and ordered a small drink.

"One for me, too," Red Raymond's voice came from his left.

"Looks like we've got something in common," Red observed with a knowing smirk, perching on the next stool.

"How's that?" Julian asked evenly.

"Our girlfriends are both hot, young cheerleaders."

That's right — Red was dating the cheerleading coach. "You two dated before, right?" Julian asked, his interest slightly piqued.

"Ten years ago," Red confirmed. "She was a student back then…I was assistant football coach."

Julian supposed that might parallel himself and Marti somewhat, she being a cheerleader and he being her former professor.

"And then she left you?" he questioned, pained at the thought of Marti doing the same to him.

"Actually, I was kind of forced to leave her," Red corrected, not going into any detail. He gave a quick grin and added, "But we're together again now, and that's all that really matters."

"Congratulations," Julian offered blandly. He finished his drink and paid his tab.

Red Raymond lifted a glass to Julian's departure. "Nice chatting with you."

It was getting dark and late, and Julian should have been on his way home but instead he ended up at the building that housed his law practice.

His thoughts kept going back to Marti and the relationship they shared right now.

Julian was in it for the long-haul. It simply hadn't occurred to him that she might not be.

He sat down at his desk, intending to bury himself in what little work he had to do at the moment and try to get his mind off the thing that plagued him.

One slight problem was that business was not currently booming, and there was nothing to really focus on enough to sufficiently distract him.

He sighed, leaning back in his chair and gazing up at the ceiling.

He could work on his new book…but that required more attention than he felt like giving at the moment.

There was a coffeepot that needed cleaned… No, too messy.

Filing. That was a chore menial enough to sufficiently occupy him for a while.

He grabbed a stack of files and got to work.

The front door rattled slightly in its frame and he looked up, half expecting to see Marti's familiar form saunter toward him like she did that night that they'd kissed for the very first time.

What began as a simple, innocent peck on the cheek had quickly heightened, and after a moment's hesitation he found himself kissing her back with a passion that matched hers.

Several weeks and a few dozen kisses later, and now here he was — head-over-heels in love with a college girl who made his heart race and his head spin…and who just might leave him without a backward glance if she felt the time was right.

The door rattled again, but it was just the wind.

Of course she wasn't coming here tonight; she was busy with cheer practice — getting tossed in the air and doing whatever else it was that cheerleaders did.

_What a life she led_, he thought to himself with a fond chuckle. And she did all that just so she could stay in college on scholarship and pursue her dream of becoming a lawyer.

Julian inhaled deeply, annoyed that the task of filing wasn't dulling his brain as well as he'd hoped.

Somehow he had to convince Marti that Memphis was where she belonged. And he needed a better plan than just stealing her list of distant prospects so she couldn't apply to them.

He slept fitfully that night — the liquor in his system responsible for part of it, and a bad dream to blame for the rest of it.

He dreamed that he was looking for Marti — looking all over town for her — but couldn't ever find her. He went to her friends for help, but they only jeered at him.

"The bobble-head wannabe?" a petite brunette cheerleader scoffed. "She was too smart — we kicked her out!"

A tall blonde guy whisked by him. "She doesn't want you anyway — she's got her own life!"

"Oh, come now, Counselor," Wanda's voice taunted. "You didn't think she'd stay here forever, now, did you?"

Red's face loomed before him. "I guess we've got nothing in common after all," he sneered.

Vanessa the cheerleading coach back-flipped into the scene. Several others followed her, their voices chanting, "Get-a-_life_! Get-a-_life_!"

Faces swam before his eyes, all of them laughing hysterically at him.

Julian stumbled back, still desperate to find her. But she was gone! His heart was breaking and none of them cared.

"Marti!" he shouted, running out the door and into the street. "Marti!"

He collided with a curly-haired blonde on a bicycle — and he jerked awake, her name a whisper on his lips.

"Ugh," he groaned, sitting up in bed and rubbing a hand across his face. "What a stupid dream."

He looked at his alarm clock. Barely three-fifteen in the morning.

Way too early to call her, and what would he say anyway? _'I had a bad dream, so I'm robbing you of your own sleep' ?_

Yeah, that sounded real mature.

He laid back down again with a sigh, rolling over and forcing the dream out of his head.


	3. Chapter 3

Early the next morning he stopped in at The Rat before heading to his office. He'd hoped to see Marti there, even to get just a glimpse of her beautiful face and improve his mood a little.

But she was nowhere in sight, so he took a seat at the counter thinking maybe he'd wait just a while.

"Rough night?" Wanda Perkins ventured, taking in his sleepy eyes and tired demeanor.

"You could say that."

"Do you need the hangover cure, or just a cup of coffee?" Wanda asked gently.

He smiled. "Just coffee, please. Black."

Wanda poured him a cup and then lingered at the counter as he took a few sips.

"My daughter didn't have anything to do with this, did she?" she finally asked, indicating his appearance with a wiggle of her finger.

Oh, boy — did she ever. But Julian answered simply, "Just a bad night's sleep, is all."

"Mm-hmm," Wanda responded, unconvinced, but let it go.

She was quite happy for her daughter, having snagged such a catch as Julian Parrish.

Wanda genuinely liked this one, and wasn't really concerned much with that little age gap between Marti and Julian. Sometimes it just had more to do with maturity than age.

She topped off Julian's coffee. "Doughnut?" she offered. "Fresh baked only yesterday."

"No, thank you," he declined. His eyes casually scanned the room, but the only blondes present at the eatery held no appeal to him.

Marti was probably in class by now. No point in sticking around any longer.

He finished his third cup of coffee and paid the balance.

"I hope you feel better soon," Wanda offered in lieu of a goodbye.

Julian hoped so too, but he seriously doubted it. He had a court case to attend today, and although he loved his career, some days as a lawyer were a lot more difficult than others.

* * *

><p>He sat behind his desk later that afternoon, studying up on a new case that he'd taken on recently.<p>

His court date earlier had gone better than he'd anticipated, with his client getting a lenient sentence for his minor crime…and Julian feeling like he was one step closer to overturning Tennessee's 'Three-Strikes' law.

Even the small victories counted.

His cell phone rang, interrupting his thoughts.

"Julian Parrish," he answered without bothering to look at the caller ID.

"Mr. Parrish, my name is Tracy Baskin with the District Attorney's office in Nashville, Tennessee."

"Yes, what can I do for you?" he replied politely.

"We received an application from a 'Marti Perkins' who listed you as a professional reference. I would like to know what you can tell me about Ms. Perkins' qualifications for potential employment in our offices."

Oh, crap. So she still managed to get applications sent off before he stole her list. Wonderful.

"Mr. Parrish?" the voice on the phone prompted.

"Yes — Marti Perkins." Julian thought fast, but couldn't bring himself to give her a bad review. Facts. That's all he would give.

"Ms. Perkins is currently still in college, a former student of mine. She…stood out in class. She's very determined in her career," he finished lamely.

"In your honest opinion, would you consider her determination an asset or a liability in the course of upholding law and justice?" Tracy Baskin now asked.

"Asset."

"Can you explain that, please?"

Julian wished this phone call would end already. "Ms. Perkins is dedicated to the welfare of her clients, and instrumental in seeing that justice is carried out properly." There — that was simple and vague.

He volunteered nothing else, and after a brief pause the caller said, "Okay…well, thank you for your time, Mr. Parrish. Have a nice day."

"Same to you," he returned genially, relieved to end the call.

But the fact that he'd gotten that call at all jarred him.

Nashville! That was over 200 miles away!

Who knew how many other applications were floating around out there?

And if Marti still had more to send off…he had to find them and get rid of them — and fast.

Julian sighed. So much for his day improving.

Brow furrowed with annoyance, he returned to his case file and tried to concentrate on it once more.

He got half a page further when the phone rang again.

Probably another D.A.'s office, he figured.

He wasn't in the mood to play nice this time.

"What?" he barked into the phone.

"Well, hello to you, too," Marti's voice answered sarcastically through the line.

"I'm sorry," Julian retracted, softening his voice. "Hi, Marti."

"Hi, Julian," she responded pleasantly this time. "Is this a bad time to call?"

"No. I was just…expecting someone else."

"That's why Caller ID was invented," she pointed out with a hint of a smirk in her voice.

"Which is useful only if you bother to look at it," he countered smoothly.

She laughed. "True." Then she finally got to the point of her phone call. "So…um, Deidre and I are having dinner at Wanda's place tomorrow night…and I thought if you wanted to, you could join us. It's nothing fancy…usually just appetizers and things."

Wanda's place — that also used to be Marti's home before she moved into that Cheertown building. Maybe she kept certain paperwork there for safekeeping?

"Yeah, dinner sounds nice," Julian accepted right away. "Should I bring anything?"

"Maybe your guitar," Marti answered. "We might play a couple of songs together after dinner."

"Alright. You and I haven't played together since we all celebrated Travis' release from prison," Julian recalled with a little smile.

"That's right…I really enjoyed that."

"The release, or the celebration?" he teased innocently.

"Both, of course." She paused, then concluded with, "Okay, so…seven o'clock tomorrow night?"

"I'll be there," he replied warmly.

"Okay. I'll see you then."

He nodded, though she couldn't see him through the phone. "See you."

The connection ended, and he was left in silence once again.

He felt a tad guilty for accepting Marti's invitation primarily so he could snoop. He should have accepted simply because he wanted to spend time with her.

Oh well…motive didn't matter. Results did.


	4. Chapter 4

"So…you're the lawyer who tracked me down," Deidre stated matter-of-factly to the man seated across from her in Wanda's living room.

"Yes, I am," Julian answered simply.

"I guess I oughta say thanks, huh?" she ventured.

"For what?" he asked, a little surprised.

Deidre glanced over her shoulder toward the kitchen where Marti and Wanda currently were. "They're not so bad to have around. Coulda had a lot worse, so…" she shrugged a shoulder in acceptance.

Julian gave a dry chuckle. "You're welcome."

"That your guitar?" she nodded toward the instrument case resting against the end of the couch. "Can I see it?"

"Go ahead," Julian replied, handing it over.

She held it in her lap and strummed a few chords. "Mm," she grimaced. She tightened the third string just a hair and played the chords again.

Satisfied with the sound that time, she handed it back. "It's a nice piece."

"Thanks." Julian returned it to its case.

Out of things to say, Deidre sat in uncomfortable silence on the couch facing the one Julian sat on. For once, she was actually relieved when Marti joined them again.

"Thank you," Julian accepted the bottle of beer that Marti offered him.

She sat beside him on the couch with her own beer in hand, kicking off her shoes and folding one leg under herself.

Marti glanced at the two silent people before her. She gave an encouraging smile to Deidre, who attempted a half-hearted one in return before shyly looking away.

Unsure himself of how to ease the tension, Julian simply took a sip of his beer.

"So…uh…how's the music store doing?" Marti asked Deidre merely to fill the silence.

Deidre gave her customary shrug. "Good…you know…still getting business."

And that was the extent of that topic.

Julian observed the girl across from him and the one next to him. These two were certainly alike in looks, but that's where the similarities ended.

Whereas Marti had a tendency to meet things head-on and push the limits, her half-sister looked like she was ready to dive under the couch cushions to escape the attention that was currently on her.

"So how'd you two meet?" Deidre now asked, quelling her natural instinct to retreat.

"Um, Julian used to be one of my professors," Marti answered a bit awkwardly, surprised at the directness of the question.

Deidre raised her eyebrows slightly. "Teachers and students. That's original."

"For the record," Julian voiced, feeling the need to clarify. "I wasn't Marti's teacher anymore when we started dating."

"Hey, I don't judge," Deidre said to him. "I mean, my parents met in rehab. But you probably already knew that."

"Okay, who's hungry?" Wanda cut in deliberately, setting a plate of appetizers on the coffee table between the couches.

The two girls reached for a bite immediately.

"This is really good, Mom," Marti praised aloud, taking a second serving.

"Why, thank you, honey," Wanda responded easily. She sat next to Deidre and gave the girl a motherly pat on the arm. "But this sweetheart right here made it. She's a bit handier than you are in the kitchen," she added with unapologetic honesty.

"Thanks a lot," Marti scoffed at the personal barb against her cooking skills.

"God knows I've wrecked a meal or two," Julian spoke up in subtle support on Marti's behalf.

Marti appreciated his deflecting the negativity away from her. She'd have to reward him for that later. For now she gave him a teasing grin. "You did set your kitchen on fire, on our first date."

"That wasn't my fault," he chuckled good-naturedly, turning a softened gaze on her for a moment. "I was…distracted."

Marti's playful expression flirted back at him. "I'd call that more than _distracted_…"

Deidre staged a cough to remind the pair they had an audience. "Can we please keep the conversation PG?" she requested a bit stiffly, having no desire whatsoever to hear the details of her half-sister's love life.

Julian's courtroom-perfected poker face betrayed no hint of shame, but Marti suspected she'd have to work on her own nonchalance a bit more before it was that good.

She took a small sip of her beer to mask any visible awkwardness.

Smoothly changing the subject, Julian asked Marti a more calculated question. "Did you ever find that list you lost?"

"No," Marti answered with a sigh. "I should have copied it to my computer, or locked it up somewhere."

"Maybe you left it lying around here somewhere," Julian suggested with deceptive innocence in his tone.

But Marti shook her head. "No, I never had any of my papers here. I'm sure it's in my dorm room somewhere; it's the only other place I had that stuff besides the library and The Rat."

So there were more papers, but apparently no point in snooping around here for them. Everything else was in her dorm room on campus.

Wanda spoke up, wanting to help. "Well, maybe you left it in a restroom somewhere?"

The oddness of that suggestion prompted Marti to question it. "And why would I have had it in a restroom?"

Surprised that her daughter would immediately deny the possibility, Wanda answered with a mother's logic. "You do like to camp out in the bathroom a lot — I figure you must be readin' in there or something."

"Mom!" Marti gasped, mortified that her mother would discuss her bathroom habits in front of others.

Deidre gave a snort of amusement, clapping a hand over her mouth.

"It's a valid suggestion," Wanda muttered, somewhat hurt but still accustomed to her daughter discounting her wisdom.

Julian, to his credit, still didn't appear fazed by any of Marti's family craziness. He simply gave Marti's shoulder a squeeze of sympathy, as if to say _'__She__'__s__ your __mother__ — __it__'__s __her __job __to __embarrass__ you__'_.

Deidre glanced at the three faces before her. In a rare effort to bail somebody else out of an awkward situation (and giving herself an excuse to hide behind something) she grabbed up her guitar and plucked a few notes of a familiar song.

The diversion had the desired effect, and soon Julian was reaching for his own guitar to join in.

Marti's guitar formed a trio on the second song, but dropped back out on the third one when she didn't recognize the tune Julian and Deidre played.

The music fizzled out with the end of the third song. Guitars were set aside once more, and the appetizers on the coffee table were consumed with renewed zeal.

"Oh, did I tell you, Marti? They asked me to bartend for the Boosters party on Friday," Wanda announced proudly.

"That's…nice," Marti responded, attempting to sound happy for her mom but falling just short of actually feeling it at the moment. Truth be told, she had bigger things to deal with on her plate right now.

She was so hoping to get her name out to some more law firms soon, but her missing list had quickly put the kibosh on that. Thankfully she'd already printed a few applications before losing that list.

Julian's attention was piqued at the mention of the Boosters party.

It wasn't that he cared about the party aspect or the boosters — but if the cheerleaders and faculty were all at a Boosters event for a whole evening, there would be nobody around to notice if he snuck into Marti's room…

God, what a stupid idea! How petty and juvenile and…and just plain _stupid_.

And yet…what else could he do? He didn't want to lose her.

She wouldn't get hired somewhere far away if she didn't apply, and she couldn't apply very well if she didn't have her papers to do it with.

No! He put the thought out of his mind. Betrayal is what it would be. And theft. Breaking the law, most definitely.

He was a lawyer, not a burglar.

As if sensing his inner conflict, Marti's voice broke through his thoughts. "Hey…you okay?"

He slipped his fingers into hers, where her hand rested on the couch between them. "Yeah. I'm good."


	5. Chapter 5

Marti recovered from the awkward dinner with her mother, half-sister, and boyfriend by hiding away in her dorm room to work on another employment application.

After brushing her teeth and changing into pajamas, she laid on her stomach on the bed and pulled from her nightstand a portfolio of papers.

Starting with the set on top, she got down to the bottom of page two, and then her mind began to drift from the task at hand.

She thought about Julian, and how at ease he seemed to be about her intention to leave town when she graduated.

Would he follow her? He had a practice of his own here in Memphis, but he could practice law anywhere he wanted to. Or maybe he didn't think the distance would be a problem for their relationship?

Maybe she'd talk to him about it...

Marti yawned, very tired all of a sudden. There was plenty of time to think about that stuff later. Right now, she needed to catch up on some sleep.

She put her folio of papers back into the drawer, slipped under the covers of her bed, and turned off her bedside lamp.

* * *

><p>She groaned when the ceiling light came on in her face.<p>

"Sorry," her roommate Savannah offered, shutting the door. "I didn't think you'd be in bed this early."

"Mmgghh-uuwway."

"Sorry…I didn't catch that," Savannah answered much too cheerily.

"I said, 'long day today'." Marti clarified, burying her head under the pillow.

Savannah understood. "I'll have the light off in two shakes of a lamb's tail."

Time crawled by, and then mercifully the room went black and quiet once again.

"Goodnight, Marti," the brunette called from across the room.

Marti rolled her eyes in the dark. "Goodnight, Savannah." She double-checked her alarm clock to make sure it was set, then she welcomed once more the sleep that overtook her.

* * *

><p>Thursday came and went without any further mention of the Marti-leaving-town scenario. But by Friday afternoon Julian was again second-guessing his decision not to sabotage his girlfriend's out-of-town employment prospects anymore.<p>

He'd gotten another contact from someone asking about Marti's credentials. This time it was a written inquiry which he almost fed to the paper shredder but thought better of at the last second and instead shoved to a far corner of his desk to be dealt with later.

Friday evening promised to be dull and boring for Julian. His daughter was supposed to visit him that weekend, but had been invited to a sleepover at a friend's house instead. And Marti would be busy with her cheerleading party all night.

Oh, there were plenty of things he could have done on a Friday evening, but none of them really interested him at the moment. Besides, he was still a little bit preoccupied with his court case scheduled for Monday.

But he already knew the case inside and out, so there was no need to study on it all weekend.

His apartment was quiet as usual, conducive to a relaxing evening at home. He cooked a simple dinner, washed a few dishes, and settled down with a book.

But after reading only a few pages, Julian was bored with the book. He closed it and reached for the television remote. Skimming through the channels, he found a marathon of old _Jeopardy_ episodes.

Sadly, that was the most interesting thing on TV that night. He didn't know why he even bothered subscribing to cable channels.

And yet he didn't really want to watch _Jeopardy_ either.

There was one particular thing he could be doing tonight…something much more productive than vegetating in front of a video screen.

He turned off the television, grabbed his keys, and went for a drive.

* * *

><p>"That hottie law professor of yours just walked in," Alice Verdura said airily, appearing at Marti's elbow. "Maybe we should hit him up for a booster check. Or even just a <em>boost<em>, if you get my drift…"

"Chill, Mata Hari," Marti replied mildly, never in the mood for Alice's raunchy sense of humor, and especially if it involved Julian.

To be honest, she was surprised to see him at a Hellcats function at all, considering he wasn't a booster — he was barely even a member of the university's staff anymore since returning to his law practice full-time.

Maybe he just came to see her perform for once. It was a sweet thought, that her boyfriend was taking an interest in the activity that funded her schooling.

She strode over, stepping up beside him.

"Excuse me, sir — can I see your ticket, please?" Marti addressed him straight-faced but with a sparkle in her eye that offset her businesslike tone.

"Why, yes ma'am; I have my ticket right here," Julian played along, leaning in to give her lips a light kiss and not really caring much about who might see it.

"Ah, the VIP ticket," she acknowledged graciously.

"Would I have any other?" Julian queried with a soft little smirk.

Marti couldn't keep it up any longer. Her lips quirked into a smile and a soft laugh came out. "But seriously…what are you doing here?"

"Well…" Julian began, dropping his voice slightly and slipping his hand surreptitiously into hers. "My apartment is void of both daughter and girlfriend, so my choices tonight were either to come here…or sit at home watching reruns of _Jeopardy_."

Marti smiled again, arranging her fingers comfortably between his. "Well, I'm glad you came."

Fingers still linked, he leaned back slightly to give her a quick once-over. He'd never seen her in uniform before, and he could honestly say she wore it very well.

Marti felt quite underdressed standing there, with him in his dress shirt and slacks and herself in a skin-revealing cheerleading costume.

At least she wasn't the only one in uniform — it was a requirement for the entire squad at functions such as this, at least until their performance was done, anyway. After that, they were free to change into whatever party attire they chose.

And now that Julian was here, Marti was doubly thankful for the flirty red dress and high heels she had stowed away for later in the gym's nearby locker room.

Savannah Monroe appeared suddenly, her already-short stature almost dwarfed by the other two. "Hi, Julian," she greeted briefly. "Marti, it's time." And she vanished again.

"Sorry, I've gotta go get in position," Marti explained, hitching a thumb in the direction of a stage set up on the other side of the gym.

"Okay," Julian answered easily. "I'll see you later, then."

Marti dodged through the crowd and disappeared behind the stage curtain. It was the perfect opportunity for him to slip away…

"Mr. Parrish!" Wanda Perkins' voice cut through the mid-level chatter as she approached balancing a tray with several different beverages. "Care for a drink?"

"No, thank you," he declined politely.

"Come to see my daughter perform?" Wanda asked rhetorically. "She's really good — I know you're gonna be impressed."

"Yes, I'm sure she is," Julian answered in a patient manner that offset Wanda's usual peppiness.

"Oh! It's about to start!" Wanda said in excited anticipation, focusing her attention on the stage. Then she remembered the tray in her hands. "I better put these down before I drop 'em." And she hurried back to the bar.

With pride in her squad, cheer coach Vanessa Lodge stepped up to the microphone. "Ladies and gentlemen, thank you very much for being here. We have a very special performance prepared for you tonight…so without further ado, I give you the Lancer University Hellcats!"

Applause broke out, and Vanessa exited the stage as the curtain opened.

Realizing his chance, Julian started to sneak out of the room…but found that he couldn't tear his eyes away from the performance. Or more specifically, from one particular girl within the performance.

Wanda was right — Marti was really good. He had to admit…she rocked the show _and_ that uniform.

But now he'd missed his first opportunity to sneak away and snoop for paperwork. Damn it. He should have just gone straight to her dorm room in the first place and not let himself be seen at all.

The cheer squad now filtered off the stage and through a far set of doors.

Were they leaving to change uniforms? Julian wondered. He dared not make his move now, in case Marti or anyone else was going back to their rooms to change.

Of course, there was always the possibility that he wouldn't be able to do any kind of snooping tonight. But if he could, he would.

He'd just have to wait a while longer and see.

Marti re-entered the gym dressed in a sexy short red dress and her blonde curls perfectly tousled.

Julian swallowed, rooted to the spot.

One dance. One dance with her, and then he had to get moving.

He took a step toward her, but she was distracted by someone else before he got there, and she was led off in another direction.

Well…maybe this was his chance after all. All he had to do was slip quietly out the door.

And so he did.

At the corridor entrance that led to the dorms, Julian paused to reconsider for the millionth time what he was about to do.

He shouldn't. It was wrong. It was breaking and entering, with a side of theft and a hefty dose of wrath if she should happen to catch him.

But she wouldn't catch him. She was busy mingling with Boosters and athletic faculty and her fellow cheerleaders.

She would barely notice that he was even gone.

He knew which door was Marti's, but somehow he forgot that she had a roommate. So upon entering the room, he was confronted with two of everything — two beds, two dressers, two nightstands.

But one half of the room was decorated quite girlishly — even a bit childish, in fact — and the other half tended more toward sophistication. Knowing Marti as he did, he went for the sophisticated half of the room.

Her dresser turned up nothing but clothes, but the nightstand by her bed looked promising.

Jackpot. Marti had a folder full of employment applications — probably printed off the internet — with addresses that definitely were not local.

Nine different packets at five-or-so pages each. Fifty-something pieces of paper that would never again see daylight.

The topmost set was partially filled out; the rest were still blank. She must be saving them to finish when she had time.

_Well, she wouldn't be finishing them at all now_, Julian told himself with satisfaction. Making sure there weren't any more, he dug down further into the drawer and found a handful of full-sized envelopes in the bottom.

Perfect. Julian poked all of the papers into one and sealed it shut.

There was only one way to get an envelope that large and stiff out of a building full of people without anybody seeing it.

Julian peered out the window to make sure nobody was looking, then he opened it and dropped the envelope with a straight downward aim.

The flat package landed silently on the ground, obscured from sight behind the bushes planted along the siding.

It was a great temporary hiding place. He'd just have to retrieve it later and find a better, more permanent place.

_Like the fireplace_, he thought with a smirk, slipping back out of the room and rejoining the party.


	6. Chapter 6

Back inside the gym again, Julian spied Marti across the room, dancing with Red Raymond from the Athletic Department.

He supposed that shouldn't really surprise him — the two of them had become a little better acquainted since joining forces to bring down football director Bill Marsh and his web of deceit.

But he still didn't like to watch her dancing with another man.

"Ms. Lodge," he greeted Marti's cheer coach. "Would you care to dance?"

Vanessa was surprised, but happy to be asked. "I'd love to."

He led his partner smoothly toward Red Raymond and Marti Perkins, making polite conversation as they stepped along.

As soon as they were close enough, Julian caught Red's eye over Vanessa's head and gave the other man a nod.

Red's face lit up, and without warning he spun Marti out to one side as Julian sent Vanessa to the other side.

The men traded dance partners without missing a step.

"Thanks," Red grinned at Julian, drawing a laughing Vanessa into his arms.

"Thank _you_," Julian returned happily, reaching one arm comfortably around Marti's slender waist.

Marti settled easily into his embrace, and couldn't help smirking at him. "Missed me already, huh?"

"Well, I didn't come here to dance with your gym teacher," he quipped.

"Oh! Well, then I'll tell Dan Patch you're looking for him," Marti cracked smoothly.

"Behave yourself," Julian chided, not amused.

Marti chuckled. "Oh, but it's so much fun not to."

A smile spread across his lips as he silently agreed with her. Then he gave a soft laugh and confessed, "You know…I still have a little trouble picturing you as a cheerleader — even after that amazing performance."

"We happen to be skilled athletes," Marti informed him in a clipped voice, as if he'd just insulted her.

Having known his fair share of headstrong women, Julian mentally braced himself, ready to offer an apology or explanation if needed.

But her stern expression dissolved into a grin, and he knew she was only teasing.

"Seriously, though…our routines can be dangerous," Marti added, wanting him to understand the strength and endurance involved in being tossed in the air and landing without injury. "People have actually broken some bones."

Julian nodded. "I believe it." But he really didn't want to talk about cheerleading routines or broken bones so he simply dropped the subject.

As usually happens when he dances with Marti, he sort of blocked out the music and the other people around them until he felt a tap on his shoulder and Dan Patch's overly-blonde head invaded his frame of view.

"Mind if I cut in?" Dan asked in a friendly but firm tone. "You been hoggin' her for three songs now."

Julian didn't respond to the guy, but lifted an eyebrow at Marti.

She gave him a smile of apology as she accepted the hand her best friend offered. "We'll dance again later," she promised.

"Sure," Julian answered with one last soft look at her before stepping back to let her dance with her oldest friend.

He meandered off the dance floor, dodging bodies here and there until he was away from the crowd once more.

"Are you really dating that guy?" Dan questioned in all seriousness.

Marti didn't like his tone or his words. "His name is Julian, and he's a very nice guy."

"Alright," Dan backed off easily. "I'm just lookin' out for my best friend."

"I appreciate that…but we're fine," Marti insisted.

"If you say so." He changed the subject. "In more important news, I found my beer goggles."

Marti laughed, hardly classifying that as important news. "Did you test them to make sure they still worked?"

"Of course," Dan confirmed with a grin. "And if you need a beer later on…well, don't bother looking in _my_ fridge."

"You're just so classy, I don't know how Savannah can stand it," Marti teased openly.

"Well, it helps when I share the beer goggles with her," Dan smoothly countered, giving Marti a twirl that flared the skirt of her dress like petals on a flower.

Once upon a time he might even have kissed her…or at least tried to. But those days were gone and they had both moved on into new relationships.

They were better off as friends, anyway. And he was lucky to have a girl like Savannah, who was not one bit threatened by his friendship with Marti.

Out of habit, he scanned the crowd for a glimpse of his girlfriend, and wasn't pleased to see her dancing with another good-looking guy who seemed quite friendly with her.

Marti felt him stiffen. "What's the matter?" She looked where Dan looked. "Oh…looks like you'd better cut in elsewhere."

Dan feigned nonchalance as he glared at the guy dancing with Savannah. "He's got 'till the end of the song. Any longer, and he's in trouble."

And he was true to his word, for the very moment that the song ended, Dan was halfway across the room to re-stake his claim.

Marti couldn't help a little roll of her eyes. Men were so predictable.

She left the dance floor too, making a bee-line to the punch bowl to quench her growing thirst.

A hand grasped her elbow lightly as Julian leaned past her to get a cup of his own. "I'm going to take off," he said after a refreshing sip. "I just wanted to say goodnight."

"Oh…okay," Marti answered, a little disappointed. She'd kind-of hoped for one more dance with him before the night was over.

But there would be more dances another time.

"Goodnight," Marti bid, leaning in for a kiss. "Thanks for coming."

Julian indulged in the kiss, savoring it. Then he tore himself away before her lips could convince him to stay longer.

He needed to retrieve that envelope of papers from the bushes and be gone without anyone seeing him, and he couldn't very well do that if he stayed as long as everyone else.

Once outside, Julian quickly located the bush concealing the packet of papers and absconded unseen with the only evidence from his 'break-in'.


	7. Chapter 7

His first instinct was to throw them into the fireplace and light a match. Instead, he dropped the packet onto his dresser to spend the rest of the evening there.

Next morning, he spread the papers out on his bed to get a better look at his competition.

Marti sure had lofty ambitions, going for some of the most high-profile and widely-known law offices in her quest for employment.

Not that she wasn't good enough for them — Julian had no doubt she'd make a worthy addition to any law firm.

He just wished she'd set her sights a little bit closer to home.

Well…maybe he could steer her in the right direction?

Yes, he could make a list too, to replace the one he stole earlier. But his list would have law firms no more than ten miles from each other.

He knew several off the top of his head, and wrote those down.

He chuckled, recalling his own first attempt to convince a preferred law firm to hire him fresh out of law school. He'd been young and green, but hid his inexperience well behind a tenacious spirit and a zeal for justice.

The doorbell rang downstairs, bringing him back to the present.

Crap, that could be Marti dropping by.

Julian scooped up all of the papers off the bed and shoved them into the most convenient spot: the back of a dresser drawer. Then he casually descended the stairs and prepared to greet his girlfriend at the door.

But it was only some kids selling cookies, and he bought a box just to get them off his doorstep.

He put the box of cookies away in a kitchen cupboard, his mind still on the papers he'd stolen from Marti.

He really should give them back. It was such a petty and juvenile thing to steal someone's employment applications!

He hated the way he'd handled things. Poor judgment prompted by a desire to hang onto someone who may or may not want to _be_ hung onto.

Julian inhaled deeply, mulling it over. It really was not like him to behave that way. He preferred to keep his deviousness and ingenuity reserved for his legal career — and keep his personal life nice and simple.

But his life hadn't been simple since the day Marti Perkins walked into it.

Her papers could stay hidden in his drawer for now. Maybe he'd give them back. Or maybe she'd just forget about them…

He almost laughed. Fat chance on that.

* * *

><p>Where were they?<p>

Marti pulled out the entire drawer and dumped it upside down on her bedspread. She even shook the drawer for good measure. But her employment applications were nowhere in sight.

This was nuts. How could a stack of papers just disappear?

Marti took a deep breath to calm herself down. There had to be a logical, reasonable explanation for why her papers were missing.

Maybe her roommate Savannah knew something about it? Marti would go ask.

Savannah Monroe and Dan Patch stood across from each other at the bar-style counter, sharing a pile of M&Ms that was spilled on the surface between them.

Several candies were separated from the pile in a somewhat crooked line. Savannah took two from the middle of the line.

"Hey, now — I'm alphabetizin' those," Dan admonished playfully with his slight accent, filling the gap in the line with two new pieces.

Savannah giggled at his silliness and popped the candy into her mouth. "Hi, Marti," she greeted.

"Tasting the rainbow?" Marti quipped.

Dan got the joke, but the implication was lost on Savannah.

"Actually, that's Skittles," the petite brunette corrected quite seriously. "Which are nowhere near as good as M&Ms, by the way."

Marti gave her a placating nod. "Clearly."

Savannah just smiled and ate three more.

"Hey, Savannah? You didn't happen take any papers out of my bedside drawer, did you?"

"I haven't taken anything out of your drawer," her roommate answered. "Why? Is something missing?"

"I can't find that stack of applications I printed off."

"Maybe you left 'em somewhere else," Dan suggested.

Marti shook her head. "No, the last time I had them, they were in the drawer by my bed. Now they're gone."

"That's weird," Savannah offered unhelpfully. "Who would steal job applications?"

Other than maybe someone pulling a mean little prank on her, Marti couldn't imagine.

She sighed. "Thanks anyway, guys."

She had one hour to spare before cheer practice, so she went back to her room, sat down with pen and paper, and racked her brain to come up with a duplicate of her missing list.

But it was no use; she could barely remember a handful of the names she'd written down before and now she was late for cheer practice.

She threw on her uniform and shoes and sprinted to the gym. She snuck in the door behind everyone and slipped flawlessly into the formation, trying to pretend she'd been there all along.

"Where've you been?" Lewis complained, lifting her in the air.

"Sorry, I got sidetracked." She shifted her weight to gain the leverage needed for that particular movement and was quickly back on her feet and stepping into the next one.

"Everything okay?" her base asked in concern this time.

"Yeah, fine," she answered abruptly. It was dangerous to talk while practicing, as their moves required intense concentration to perform them without stumbling and getting hurt.

"Nice of you to join us, Marti," Vanessa called out from the front of the gym. "Back row, tighten up your line — you're crooked."

Marti forced herself to give 110% during practice. Coach Lodge tended to be extra tough on them after public performances, and the Boosters party the other night had definitely fired her up.


	8. Chapter 8

Julian looked up in surprise as a curly-haired blonde dropped heavily into the seat across from him.

"Long day?" he ventured with raised eyebrow.

"You have no idea," Marti murmured in agreement. "Cheer practice was brutal. You know, I used to like being a gymnast…but I kinda hate that it's the only way to keep my scholarship now."

"You won't have to do it forever," Julian replied lightly. "Just until you graduate."

He was sorry the moment he'd said it. He didn't know why he brought up that stupid topic. Self-punishment for being a lying jerk, maybe?

The subject of graduation seemed to perk Marti up a bit. "True. Oh, but speaking of which…do you know I still haven't found my list of law firms to apply to? At first, I thought maybe I just misplaced it…but now a bunch of my other papers have disappeared too."

He feigned surprise, raising an eyebrow. "Are gremlins invading Cheertown?"

"I'm beginning to wonder about that," Marti returned dully, glancing down at the plate between them.

A new thought occurred to her, and she looked back up at Julian with something akin to suspicion on her face. "You wouldn't know anything about it, would you?"

His eyebrow creased in a deliberate show of innocence and just the right amount of offense. "What makes you think I would?"

"You told me once that your eyes are everywhere," she reminded him with a pointed look. "Maybe they've been in my bedroom."

"Miss Perkins," he leaned in toward her with a low seductive tone, deflecting her accusation with a more personal implication. "If my eyes were anywhere near your bedroom…I can guarantee you that they would _not_ be looking at _paper_."

Marti blushed at the innuendo, looking down in a brief moment of modesty. "I guess that was a pretty stupid question, huh? Sorry."

Julian gave her a smile. "I forgive you. In fact…" he paused, reaching down to pull a few pages from his briefcase. "Since you lost your list of law offices, I made you a new one."

"Julian! Thank you!" Marti took the list with a smile and scanned over it. One eyebrow wrinkled slightly and she paused, confused. "These are all around here…"

He gave an easy shrug of one shoulder. "Where better to start than right in your own backyard?"

It wasn't exactly what she wanted, but she was touched by the effort. "Thank you," she repeated sincerely.

He smiled back. "No problem. And if you want…I could even write you a recommendation letter to send out to those."

Her eyes lit up again. "That would be awesome." She had hoped he might write her a recommendation, but thought it might be inappropriate since they were dating each other. She wasn't even entirely sure she should be listing him as a professional reference, but she really had no other one to give.

Tentatively she now confessed, "I hope you don't mind, but uh…I already gave your name as a reference on a couple of applications…" She paused to gauge his reaction.

But Julian knew that, having already received the phone calls. He replied neutrally with, "I kind of expected that you would, since I was your professor for a while."

"Oh, good," Marti voiced, relieved that he wasn't upset about it. She picked another bite of food off the plate between them. "I guess you haven't heard anything back yet, then?"

Why couldn't she drop it? She truly was a maddening creature, for she had this innate ability to give him goosebumps one minute…and heartburn the next.

The hope in her voice pricked at his conscience, and he covered with a look of condolence and a brief shake of his head. "Sorry."

Marti was understandably disappointed…and Julian knew she would be doubly so if she found out her lover was turning into a lying thief.

How would he ever explain himself if his deception was revealed? _'I love you — don't leave me'_ sounded awfully pathetic even just in his head.

He pushed the thought out of his mind and focused on spending some time with his girlfriend.

* * *

><p>She read through the list again, the fact not lost on her that Julian hadn't included his own law firm among the names he'd put down.<p>

Marti wasn't sure if she was disappointed by that or not. Sure, they were dating and he appeared to support her career choice wholeheartedly…but that didn't necessarily mean he wanted to work with her, too.

Her week was shaping up to be a very busy one. A few extra-credit assignments in some of her classes...juggling her tentative friendship with her half-sister...and to top it off there was a new cheerleading competition coming up soon.

It was nine more days before she was able to spend more than five minutes at a time with Julian again, and they both enjoyed a leisurely stress-relieving stroll around his residential block together one afternoon.

Drenched from a sudden downpour that interrupted their pleasant walk, they burst through the door of Julian's apartment laughing and futilely attempting to shake off some of the rainwater.

"Why don't you get us a couple of dry towels and I'll make us something hot to drink," Julian suggested, stealing an arm around her waist and pressing a kiss to the wet curls at Marti's temple.

So Marti grabbed two towels from the bathroom. _A couple of dry shirts would be good too_, she thought.

In Julian's bedroom she opened the top drawer of his dresser, but that one held only socks. The second drawer down had folded t-shirts, and she pulled out the top two.

As she slid the drawer shut, she heard a slight crinkle that piqued her curiosity. Fabric didn't crinkle like that, but paper sure did.

Nosy enough to want to know what secrets he kept in his shirt drawer, she pulled it open again and poked her hand toward the back.

She found a stiff little rectangle made of several sheets of purple paper that had been folded over a few times.

Wait a minute — that paper looked familiar. In fact, it looked an awful lot like the purple stationery she'd borrowed from Savannah to make her prospects list on after forgetting her laptop at Wanda's house.

She pulled out the purple rectangle and unfolded it, aghast at her discovery.

Sure enough, there was the list she'd lost — the law firms and addresses she'd so painstakingly compiled by hand in her plan to move up north and formally launch her law career.

But what was it doing hidden away in Julian's dresser? And what other things of hers did he illegally possess?

She dug deeper, her breath catching in her throat as she pulled out even more incriminating evidence.


	9. Chapter 9

Julian filled a tea kettle with water and set it on the stove. He heard footsteps behind him just as he was reaching for the knob to start the burner.

"Hey," he said over his shoulder. "Do you want tea or hot chocolate?"

"You want to explain this?"

The abrupt accusation in her voice was plain as day. Leaving the burner off, he turned to face her.

Marti stood in the doorway with papers in her hand and barely-controlled anger on her face.

Julian silently cursed himself for not destroying those damned papers. "You weren't supposed to find that."

"You had it all this time?" Her eyes flashed at him, a mixture of anger and betrayal, and she couldn't even find the rest of the words to express what she was feeling right then. "Julian — what the hell? !"

He tried to turn the tables on her. "And what the hell were _you_ doing, going through my dresser?"

"And _you_ didn't go through _my_ stuff?" she fired back. "You _stole_ this from my bag!"

"Marti —"

"And _these!_" She held up the stack of job applications that had gone missing from her dorm room. "These papers you supposedly never saw! I even felt _guilty_ for actually thinking you might've taken them, and the whole damn time you were _lying_ to my _face!_"

He clenched his jaw and looked away, shame creeping up on him.

"Why steal these?" she demanded tearfully, struggling to understand. "Why sabotage me? Do you really not believe in me the way you say you do? I shouldn't pursue anything that doesn't bear the Julian Parrish Stamp of Approval?"

"You are so far off track —," Julian's voice rose above hers, his stubborn nature and experience as a lawyer unwilling to let him back down.

"Then what is it?" Marti pleaded, still clutching her handful of papers. "God damn it, Julian — _what? !_"

"I don't want you to leave me."

His words were so hushed that she wasn't sure she'd heard them right. "What?"

Julian gave a helpless little half-smile and a resigned shrug of the shoulder, leaning back against the counter for support. "I'm in love with you. If you leave Memphis…you'll be leaving me, too. And that's just…not acceptable."

Her head was spinning at his truly unexpected confession. "You're in love with me?" she echoed in almost a whisper.

His manner now completely subdued, he replied simply, "I am."

Her anger ebbed away as she searched his eyes and found only truth in them. "Why couldn't you just tell me that in the first place?" she finally asked.

"I didn't know how," he sighed sadly. "You have your whole life ahead of you. So much to offer. The thought of holding you back nearly kills me. But the idea of losing you…that's even worse."

Tears pricked her eyes as she stood there just looking back at him. She'd never seen him look so lost before — so…_defeated_.

She swallowed, looking down. She still gripped her list in her hands. The list that represented her future in a place she thought she'd wanted it. But now, all of a sudden, they were just a bunch of words on paper.

She took a breath, in and out, thinking. Then she crumpled the pages together in her hands and released the wad to the floor.

Julian watched the papers fall from Marti's hand, discarded, and a smile crept onto his lips as he dragged his gaze back to her face.

He'd won, and he knew it.

In hindsight, he wasn't entirely proud of the way he'd handled it — but he'd gotten the result he wanted and he knew that Marti's career would not be any less satisfying or successful if she stayed in Memphis.

Now he simply extended one hand in Marti's direction, a contrite expression on his handsome face.

Unable to resist or deny him when he looked at her like that, she put her hand in his and allowed him to draw her into his arms.

Emotionally and physically drained from their intense confrontation, all she could do now was wrap her arms around his middle and bury her face against his chest.

He held her tight and pressed a kiss to the top of her damp hair before resting his cheek there.

She sniffled into his t-shirt that was still a bit wet from the rain. "I think I might love you too, by the way."

His spirits lifted a little. They would have been soaring if she hadn't included _'I think I might'_ with the _'love you'_ part…but for now, he'd take what he could get.

"I'm so sorry I made you think I didn't believe in you," he told her.

"Thank you," she answered forgivingly. A silly, random thought occurred to her and she chuckled.

"What?" Julian murmured.

"For someone who's not a hugger, you sure do it well."

He gave a soft laugh too, holding her even closer. "Only with you, Marti. _Only_ with you."


	10. Epilogue

**EPILOGUE**

He had always been proud of her determination and her accomplishments, but the day she passed the Bar Exam and officially became a real lawyer, his pride in her was multiplied a hundredfold.

Marti Perkins was going to change the world. He believed that wholeheartedly.

She'd certainly changed _his_ world, and that of his daughter, too.

"Dad, where is she?" Nicky complained for the third time, never one to like being kept waiting, especially when a celebration was on the calendar.

"She'll be here," Julian answered mildly, stretching his legs out under the restaurant table. "She's just running late."

But in the back of his mind he was concerned about her absence too. What if she got in a wreck on her way to the restaurant?

He pulled out his cell phone and started to call her.

"Finally!" Nicky exclaimed suddenly, spotting Marti winding between tables to approach theirs.

Julian stood, slipping his phone into his pocket and pulling out Marti's chair.

"I'm sorry — traffic was terrible," Marti apologized with a kiss for him. She also dropped a kiss on the top of the child's head before sitting in her seat.

"I think Nicky was about ready to eat the tablecloth," Julian teased his daughter with a smile, returning to his own seat.

"I was not," the girl wrinkled her nose at her father, not entirely appreciative of his odd sense of humor.

"Have you ordered?" Marti asked, reaching for Julian's menu.

"We didn't want to start without you," he answered.

"I just want dessert," Nicky stated matter-of-factly. She had a tendency to speak her mind — a trait she'd inherited from her father and learned even more from being around Marti.

"Dessert sounds good," Marti agreed pleasantly.

So Julian flagged down a waiter. They ordered dessert in lieu of a meal, plus wine for the two adults and a sparkling cider for Nicky.

Julian raised his glass of wine. "To the newest member of the Tennessee Bar Association," he toasted, gazing warmly into his girlfriend's eyes.

Marti smiled widely, lifting her glass to clink gently against his.

Not one to be left out, Nicky grabbed her flute of sparkling cider and quickly clinked it with the other two.

"Have you decided which job you're going to take?" Julian asked, referring to the two top law offices in the area that Marti had received offers from.

She sighed. "I can't make up my mind. They're both really good; I almost wish I could have both of them."

"In that case," he replied. "I have a third option to put on the table."

"Okay, let's hear it," Marti responded readily.

Julian reached across the surface of the restaurant table to take one of her hands in his. "Alright, well…I had this crazy little idea," he began a bit hesitantly. "I was thinking of taking on a new law partner."

Marti's eyes lit up. "Oh, like 'Parrish-and-Perkins, Attorneys at Law'?"

"Actually…" he gave her a little smile and a significant raise of one eyebrow. "I was thinking more along the lines of 'Parrish-and-_Parrish_…Attorneys at Law'."

Surprised, Marti stammered out, "As in… — ?"

Still holding her hand, Julian looked her full in the eyes and continued softly, "As in…will you marry me?"

Her heart skipped a beat. (Two or three, in fact.) Wow, she hadn't expected _this!_

Marti shot a glance at Nicky's grinning little face. Apparently the child wasn't surprised, and was one-hundred-percent on board with it.

Marti turned tear-bright, love-filled eyes back to Julian. "Yes," she whispered with a nod, swallowing the lump in her throat and gripping his hand. "Yes, I will marry you."

A mixture of joy and relief sprang to Julian's face, and he leaned over for a kiss.

"_Yuck,"_ Nicky covered her eyes, her childish innocence grossed out by the display. She waited for the kissing to end, but it didn't look like it was going to any time soon.

"Dad," Nicky interrupted, poking her father's arm with a little black box. "Hey! Here."

But Julian wasn't quite done yet. Three more little smooches on Marti's lips, and he finally pulled back.

He took the box from his daughter and picked up Marti's left hand. He slid the ring onto her finger and then slipped his fingers intimately between hers.

Marti looked at the ring sparkling on her hand, then back up at the affectionate look on Julian's handsome face. She gave his hand a gentle tug and leaned in for one more kiss.

Julian complied easily, more than happy to indulge her.

* * *

><p>The End.<p> 


End file.
